Collective Bargaining Agreement: How it Works

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What is a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA)?

When a workplace has a union, negotiation between employees and employers defines the terms that govern certain aspects of the workplace. The legal contract that defines these terms is called a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). This document defines the terms of condition of employment and includes details about things like wages and hours.

How Collective Bargaining Agreements Work

Collective bargaining agreements make employer-employee negotiations legally binding. They are helpful to both parties because they define, in writing, the terms of employment that are required from each.

The process for coming to a collective bargaining agreement varies, but generally the timeline looks something like this:

Check out this article to learn more the collective bargaining agreement process.

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Examples of Collective Bargaining Agreements

Collective bargaining agreements are valuable tools to have in any workplace. They ensure that employees are treated fairly and that employers understand their role in prioritizing their workers’ needs.

Here is an example of a successful collective bargaining agreement:

The employees at JJ’s Grocery Store do not received paid vacation. The employees are all a part of a labor union and decide to come together to demand paid vacation time from the company’s upper management.

First, the employees go to the labor union board to explain their demands and to ask for help. Then, with the help of labor lawyers , they bring their demands to upper management. They explain that they want a minimum of three weeks’ vacation for all full-time employees with extra vacation days given to those who have more tenure in the company.

The grocery store’s management decides that paid vacation time is a reasonable request from their employees, but that the company’s budget does not include enough money to compensate for three full weeks of vacation. Instead, they propose that each employee will receive two weeks.

Employees of the grocery store review the negotiations and agree to the two-week vacation time offer. The measure is finalized and placed into a collective bargaining agreement to be filed and certified so that it can be legally binding.

For more examples of collective bargaining agreements, check out this webpage .

What’s Included in Collective Bargaining Agreements

Collective bargaining agreements include a wide range of different objectives and solutions within. Since they are documents meant for the improvement of processes and rules for the benefits of employees, all of the objectives within deal with different aspects of an employee’s role with the company. There are also several parts of a collective bargaining agreement that operate to set the expectation for certain events, such as termination or disciplinary procedures.

Here are some examples of what collective bargaining agreements might detail:

Find out more about what’s included in collective bargaining agreements here .

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Are Collective Bargaining Agreements Legally Binding?

Collective bargaining agreements are legal contracts that make it illegal for employers or employees to violate the terms within. Having a legally binding aspect to a CBA is essential since these agreements are created with the employees in mind.

Consequences to Violating Collective Bargaining Agreements

When a collective bargaining agreement is violated, there are consequences. This is beneficial to both parties of the agreement since it reinforces the necessity to obey the agreement. However, violations unfortunately do still happen. Luckily, with a collective bargaining agreement in place, legal recourse can be taken against the offending party.

Check out this webpage for more details about collective bargaining agreements and their legality.

Get Help with Collective Bargaining Agreements

Are you ready to start negotiating a collective bargaining agreement? You need professional labor lawyers or employment lawyers on your side to help walk you through the process. Post a project on ContractsCounsel today to get connected with employment lawyers and labor lawyers who understand your needs and are standing by to help.

ContractsCounsel is not a law firm, and this post should not be considered and does not contain legal advice. To ensure the information and advice in this post are correct, sufficient, and appropriate for your situation, please consult a licensed attorney. Also, using or accessing ContractsCounsel's site does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and ContractsCounsel.